posted 02-06-2011 12:59 PM            

Three different fabrics seem to claim anti-tarnish properties. I wonder if anyone has any scientific or empirical knowledge of which works best and why.

One is Pacific cloth -- the brown stuff that is often used to line drawers and such. I understand that it has microscopic amounts of silver embedded in it...a sort of sacrificial silver, I guess, that tarnishes before the object. I would assume it would need to be replaced at some point. But that would be a messy job for drawer liners and I haven't heard of anyone doing that. I also have not seen premade bags and pouches made from it, which puzzles me.

Another is the ubiquitous blue stuff. I'm thinking of the bags and pouches that you can buy from Hagerty. I'm assuming that this is also the same fabric that you get when you buy, say, new silver flatware from a jewelry store. I have no idea if this is plain ole flannel or if it is impregnated with something.

And then there is the light gray fabric that you see in pouches, I think made by Reed and Barton, that I have seen some dealers use. I don't know if it has any inherently protective properties for the long term, or if the pouches are simply cheap...or maybe simply a bit more elegant-looking.

And maybe there's something else I haven't mentioned. I have some minor, not valuable family pieces that are still wrapped in the odd bits of flannel bags that I received them in -- things like shoe bags. I have no idea of that's any better or worse than "proper" silver bags.

Any thoughts or experience to share?

posted 02-06-2011 09:03 PM            

but I'm pretty sure there was a longer, more thorough one I'm not finding.

Also, if responding to one's own posts is a sign of madness, I'm completely cuckoo.

posted 02-07-2011 12:13 AM            

I don't know which is the best cloth - I have just used the brown cloth that is sold in our local fabric store and it works. I think part of the reason it works is that the silver is actually covered up and that keeps air from circulating around it. I know that silver I keep close to an air vent tarnishes much faster than silver kept in a protected area.

posted 02-07-2011 09:42 PM            

Very tiny pieces of metallic silver are impregnated into the fibers of the cloth. These particles produce a very high surface area of silver. The gases in the atmosphere which produce 'tarnish' react with the particles leaving fewer gas molecules to react with your items you wish protected.

One other way to protect your silver is to have it Rhodium plated but this precludes the formation of any patination on treasured antique pieces.

posted 02-07-2011 09:48 PM            

quote:

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It is a very attractive trophy

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Eye of the beholder, I suppose.

posted 04-08-2012 09:46 AM            

'To provide a bit more information on your question on silver cloth it helps to understand a bit about why silver tarnishes and how silver cloth can help.

Think of your silver and silver-plated things as ongoing science experiments. When silver comes into contact with sulfur or chlorine in the air or in a material, the sulfur or chlorine will start a chemical reaction with the silver. The result is silver sulfide or silver chloride which is commonly known as tarnish. If the sulfur or chlorine is concentrated and kept in prolonged contact, the chemical reaction will go further and eat into the silver metal making those new compounds.

To keep your silver nice and shiny, you first will want to do whatever practical things you can do to keep sulfur and chlorine in the air or in food or other things away from your nice silver. For example, natural gas has sulfur in it so if you cook on a gas range, you would not want to store your silver in a cupboard above your stove or oven, and likely not even in your kitchen. Or table salt is full of chlorine so you would not want to keep salty food in a silver bowl for very long, or there is a fair amount of sulfur in eggs. Likewise most rubber objects have a fair amount of sulfur in them. While you can not keep your silver away from everything that may have sulfur or chlorine in it, or from such chemicals in the air, but the best first step is to try to minimize this and when you do have such contact with foods containing these substances to wash your silver right after using it and not leave it in the sink or refrigerator overnight for the sulfur or chlorine to go to work on the silver.

The second good practice is to use your silver. Silver that is handled and used regularly will not tarnish very quickly and not need polishing so often.

Finally, if you are going to store your silver, wrapping it in silver cloth of some kind, and/or keeping anti-tarnish strips in among the silver is a good approach, but be sure to store it in a place where sulfur or chlorine are not fighting your protection methods.

There are basically two kinds of silver protection cloth that I know of. One is Pacific cloth which I think is also a proprietary brand name. My understanding of Pacific cloth is that it has a lot of tiny silver particles embedded in it and it works by these particles sacrificially absorbing any sulfur and chlorine in the air before it gets to the silver inside the cloth. The other kind of silver cloth I know of is similar to Pacific cloth and has different brand names - one of them is Guardian cloth I think. This cloth is similar and works in a similar way but as I understand the difference is this other kind of cloth is treated with silver nitrate rather than having pure silver in it. It seems to work just as well, though I think that the Pacific cloth with the silver particles would last much longer in its effect (lifetime vs. many years). It seems to be a case of you get what you pay for.

In the end though, an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure to do what you can to minimize any sources of sulfur or chlorine in the area of your home where you will be storing your silver.'

So . . . I am of the opinion that if you want something to last a lifetime or have something that has great sentimental or monetary value, spend the money and get Pacific cloth. Otherwise just get the lowest cost name brand cloth. I would avoid 'mystery' cloth where you have no assurance that it is what it purports to be, just to save a couple of dollars. Also, if you have any sewing ability, getting just the cloth and making your own bags and flatware holders can be not only less expensive but you get the advantage of having custom made bags and holders for your exact silver objects. And while you are at it, make sure you have removed any sources of sulfur or chlorine from anywhere near your silver as I mentioned in my post.

Kimo

posted 04-22-2012 11:35 AM            

I use school chalk (to write on blackboards) - and put it next to my silver objects - it helps to stop tarnishing more or less - and do not look too strange. See red arrows on the photo.

posted 04-23-2012 08:17 AM            

I have at least a partial answer to your quest for empirical analysis of silver cloths. I had asked Jeff Herman a similar question and he let me know about a scientific study that was done by the Cutlery and Allied Trades Research Association comparing the tarnish resistance of Pacific cloth to Kenized cloth. The study concludes that both types are almost equal in their ability to resist tarnish (which they both do very well). Kenized Pacific Silvercloth test pdf

I hope this helps!